Kentucky State Police Troopers traveled the state on Tuesday delivering teddy bears to children in hospitals. KSP Post 10 Harlan Trooper Shane Jacobs, telecommunication supervisor Yolanda Young and KSP intern Madelynn Henson visited children at Harlan ARH Hospital.

The concept of the ‘Trooper Teddy’ program is for troopers to provide stuffed animals to children during traumatic experiences such as a car crash, child or sexual abuse cases.

Additionally, troopers deliver bears to terminally ill children. The goal is to establish trust between officers and children that will assist in reducing the child’s stress during a traumatic incident.

The Trooper Teddy Bear Project came to life in December of 1989 after Kentucky First Lady Martha Wilkinson hosted a gala fundraiser at Red Mile Racecourse earlier that summer. The black tie event raised the needed funds to purchase 2,000 Trooper Teddy Bears. The first allotment of bears included a personal note on each stuffed animal from Wilkinson.

The program ran out of funding in early 2000 until recently when KSP was able to utilize asset forfeiture funds from criminal drug activity to purchase bears a small allotment of bears in 2016. If you would like to support the Trooper Teddy initiative you can do so in two ways — make a tax deductible monetary donation to the project ot purchase a Trooper Teddy Bear. Troopers are selling the bears for $20 and proceeds will go toward the Trooper Teddy Fund to sustain the program.